US says Iran proxies carried out series of base attacks

WASHINGTON

Iran's proxies have carried out a series of attacks on bases where U.S. forces are colocated with their Iraqi partners, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo alleged Friday.

Pompeo cited a Dec. 9 rocket attack on a facility at Baghdad International Airport that he said wounded five Iraqi soldiers, including two who died of their injuries.

An additional attack occurred Wednesday when two Katyusha rockets landed near the outside perimeter of the airport. No casualties were reported from the Dec. 11 rocket strikes, and there was no immediate claim of responsibility for that attack or the one on Monday.

He maintained, that Washington "will continue to work hand-in-hand with our Iraqi partners, including the Iraqi Security Forces, which played a pivotal role in reclaiming Iraq’s sovereignty from ISIS," referring to the Daesh/ISIS terror group.

"We must also use this opportunity to remind Iran’s leaders that any attacks by them, or their proxies of any identity, that harm Americans, our allies, or our interests will be answered with a decisive U.S. response," Pompeo said.

State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus further added that Washington "makes no distinction between #Iran and its proxies in Iraq."

"We will respond if our people are harmed, & we continue to support an independent Iraq," she said on Twitter.